Kaka to Edit or Not?

[Ian McHenry]

Took this image of a New Zealand forest parrot (Kaka) in Wellington recently.
Would like to know whether original (resized only) is preferred to edited image please.
Details: Pentax K10D with Tamron 70-300 @ 133mm.
1600 ISO 1/180 @ F5.6 Multi segment metering.
Here is original.
Thanks: Ian Mc

[Ian McHenry]

And here is cropped version edited with Noise Ninja and Unsharp Mask only.
Ian Mc

[Kerry Perkins]

Ian, I definitely prefer the cropped version. I think it brings more focus to the bird and minimizes some of the background, which is pretty busy. Very nice details and color in the final product. You might consider taking a bit off the top. Very cool bird!

[Hal Everett]

I much prefer the edited version as well. A bit more saturation?

[Ian McHenry]

Thanks very much Kerry & Hal
Have taken a bit off the top and added saturation (both definite pluses I think)
Here is latest.
Cheers: Ian Mc:cool:

[Lance Peters]

Hi Ian - Cropped version for me also - Cool Bird.
Might set a black and white point and see if that gives it a bit of added POP.
BG is busy but not much you could do about that. Wish the foot was clear of the branch - but you gotta take what you are given.

[Ian McHenry]

Thanks Lance
Lots of great suggestions.
Have added black point and lightened shadows.
Thought this result was a wee bit harsh so added Noiseware @ Landscape setting.
Cheers: Ian Mc

[Bob Decker]

Definately prefer the cropped version. The last offering is a bit too much IMHO. There's probably a "happy place" somewhere between the two.

[Dave Mills]

Hi Ian, Cropped version for me. The last repost looks oversaturated so I might back off a bit. Good comments above...

[Bill Dix]

Lovely bird. Good comments above. My personal preference would be for a crop halfway between the first and second crops (putting the eye according to the ROT), and saturation halfway between panes 5 and 7. In any event, great capture.

[Alfred Forns]

Hi Ian ... bird keeps looking better !!! Original is not bad and like how you framed in camera ... ideally should have gone vertical !!

Here is another version .. btw exposure was perfect !! First gave a slight curves adjustment, then selectively darken parts of the bird, then blurred the bg some, sharpened the bird only and lastly darkened the corners to draw attention to the center !!! .... btw was undecided about the warmth but could go either way !!

[Dave Leroy]

I really like the bird in Alfred's post the best, and oh my! it really shows how important pp'n skills are to get photos to the next level.

Cool looking bird Ian and thanks for getting the thread going. Well done.

Dave

[Deborah Harrison]

Alfred nailed it! It's amazing how a few subtle adjustments in PS or LR can make the world of difference. I hope others who view these forums are benefiting as much as I am, even from other people's images.

Thanks all you moderators!!

[Ian McHenry]

What can I say !!!
Alfred's edit is simply stunning. Perfect example of PP skills and beautiful rendition of this neat parrot.
Thanks Al for taking the time and posting your workflow.
My thanks for all recent comments and suggestions.
Will tone down saturation & see where I go from there.
My most personally valued thread to date.
Cheers: Ian Mc :D
PS: Interesting that Alfred retained original crop.
Back to the drawing board for me !!!!

[Ian McHenry]

One last fling.
Using Lance's suggestion of Black Point and Alfred's use of original crop and several suggestions to reduce saturation here is result.
Workflow: From original crop applied Black Point, then Lightened Shadows, reduced saturation and sharpened slightly.
Cheers: Ian Mc

[Lance Peters]

Rockin Repost AL!!
PS Skills have become a important part of photography - but getting it as close in camera as possible will of course limit what you have to do afterwards.
And I like the KISS principle :)

[Desmond Chan]

Easy choice: Al's the best !!:)